Trans Woman Eyricka King Attacked & Denied Medical Treatment in New York Prison

Eyricka King, a transgender woman, has gone viral this week after a video circulated of her mother Kelly Harrison detailing the alleged sexual, physical and verbal abuse her daughter has experienced in solitary confinement. "My daughter was brutally beat by officers," she said. "I have seen it done to other transgenders in jail."

The assaults were brought to Harrison's attention when she received a letter from King, who's currently incarcerated at the Franklin Correctional Facility. When King was called back to court, she managed to successfully send her mother a letter from the downstate correctional facility.

"They are trying to kill me," King wrote, describing how she's been repeatedly threatened and denied necessary medical treatment. When she brought these issues to the attention of her sargents, they denied and cuffed her, saying, "I don't feel like dealing with this pussy faggot," before repeatedly punching her and saying, "You are a man, what is a fucking transgender?"

After being stripped naked and facing tremendous pain from their attacks, King wrote that she's "so scared" and in fear of them killing her and calling it suicide. "I need out of the box before it's too late, I swear," she said. "I think I might die in here, please help me."

This was reportedly her third attempt at sending Harrison a letter for help—each time, offers would return it shredded entirely. "I am not going to let this be swept underneath the rug with my daughter," Harrison said in the viral plea. "This girl has been beat, she has been attacked and everything," she continued, before begging viewers to share the video.

King's story quickly caught on, as allies and LGBTQ advocates began demanding she be moved to protective custody and not solitary confinement. Change.org petitions were created and celebrities, such as Janet Mock, spoke out about the injustice. "This is cruel and unjust yet all too usual punishment and treatment of trans women of color," Mock wrote on Instagram, urging her followers to take action.

According to the Justice for Eyricka Instagram, she's since been removed from solitary confinement, but Harrison's live Facebook feed this afternoon suggests that's a lie the Franklin Correctional Facility is telling callers.

King has, however, received medical treatment, where doctors confirmed one of her breast implants has ruptured and gone unnoticed since she was attacked by officers on June 30. King has scar tissue around her breast, Harrison detailed.

"The fight is far from over," Harrison said to more than 400 viewers, demanding everyone request that King be immediately removed from the Franklin Correctional Facility, "where they have a lack of tolerance and disrepsect for the trans and gay community."